The Okotoks Dawgs’ home, Seaman Stadium, is in the spotlight after being recognized as the best ballpark in summer collegiate baseball by Ballpark Digest.
As you may have guessed, the Okotoks Dawgs are a summer collegiate baseball team from Okotoks. The team is a six-time Western Canadian Baseball League (WCBL) champion.
“The Dawgs are honoured to have our home, Seaman Stadium, recognized as the best ballpark in summer collegiate baseball,” Okotoks Dawgs’ managing director John Ircandia told the Rocky Mountain Outlook.
But champions aren’t born from nothing. The Okotoks Dawgs’ skills were sharpened in Seaman Stadium, a $20 million facility with a seating capacity of over 5,000.
“It was built as a labour of love to offer talented youth and summer collegiate players on both sides of the border facilities where they could hone their skills to the highest level,” said Ircandia.
The stadium’s first-ever opening for the Okotoks Dawgs was on June 6, 2007. Back then, the stadium only had a capacity of just under 2,700.
But that day, every spectator saw something spectacular—a double rainbow in the southeast and a magnificent view of the Rockies to the west. Talk about one hell of an opening!
Since then, Seaman Stadium has only improved. In 2009, the Duvernay Fieldhouse was added next to the stadium. The fieldhouse is equipped with a full-sized indoor training centre.
The centre includes a regulation-sized field turf infield, multiple batting cages, weight and cardio rooms, team clubhouses, and much more.
Seaman Stadium features party decks, hospitality areas, an Okotoks Dawgs general store, concession stations, a massive scoreboard, and an interactive colour video board.
It’s no wonder fans voted for Seaman Stadium on the Ballpark Digest website. Ballpark Digest is the leading web resource “covering the business and culture of baseball, ballparks and more.”
Last year, Robin Roberts Stadium, home of the Springfield Lucky Horseshoes, took the win. But this year, Seaman Stadium came back with a vengeance.
Seaman Stadium knocked out Robin Roberts Stadium in the final four, putting the stadium neck and neck with Vermont Lake Monsters’ Centennial Field in the final round.
“We thank our fans for expressing to our southern neighbours what we in Canada have known for some time: Seaman Stadium truly is the best ballpark in all of summer collegiate baseball!” expressed Ircandia.
In the end, Seaman Stadium prevailed. The Okotoks Dawgs now have their sights set on back-to-back wins in the WCBL championships.
On Tuesday, August 15, the Okotoks Dawgs kicked off Game 1 of the best-of-three 2023 WCBL Final against the Medicine Hat Mavericks. The Okotoks Dawgs came out on top with a score of 8-0.
But the Medicine Hat Mavericks came back swinging, securing a 12-9 win over the Okotoks Dawgs on Wednesday.
The final nail bitter between the two teams was held on August 17 at Seaman Stadium, and guess who came out on top?
The Okotoks Dawgs with a score of 13 to 5!
That makes them seven-time WCBL champions and ending the season as top Dawgs in a top stadium!
You can watch the highlights of the game here.
